Condition of peace and spiritual progress in the

I have no doubt that many of the good people gathered here this morning, not having heard, will wonder what has become of the great Tabernacle organ. It may be proper for me to say to you that the organ is undergoing thorough repairs, and is in a condition that it can not be used at present. Perhaps it will not be prepared for use for several weeks to come. Since the last conference held in this tabernacle, the tabernacle itself has undergone somewhat extensive repairs. A new floor has been laid, the seats have all been renovated, repainted, revarnished, and the building put in very excellent condition. During the process of painting and renovating the interior of the building, it was necessary to keep up a high degree of heat to dry the paint, etc., to have the building ready for this conference. It was found that this prolonged heating injuriously affected some parts of the organ, putting it really out of order for the present. I thought just a word of explanation with reference to this matter might be appropriate at this time. ¶

This is the opening session of the eighty-fifth annual general conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I feel very thankful indeed that I have been permitted, with the rest of you, to be present at the opening of this conference, and I hope that we will enjoy a blessed time together, during the three days that many, if not all of us, will have the privilege of assembling here, morning and afternoon, to be instructed and to give instruction and to hear exhortation and, if necessary, be reproved as the Spirit of the Lord may direct those who shall address us from time to time. I am very happy, indeed, under' the impressions that weigh upon my mind with reference to the prosperity of the work of the Lord throughout these valleys of the mountains, and in the various missions of the Church throughout the world. Everything seems to point to the fact, which we hold in our faith and in our anticipation, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is still pursuing its course peacefully onward and upward, extending and increasing on the right hand and on the left, and all along the front. It is really unnecessary, perhaps, for me to repeat, in some measure, at least, that which has been frequently said at the opening of conferences of the Church, that there never has been a time, at least within my remembrance, when the Church was in a better condition spiritually and temporally, than it is today. I do not believe that there has ever been a time when the organizations of the various quorums of the Priesthood were more nearly perfect or more diligent than they are at present, or when the stakes of Zion were more properly guarded and their interests watched by those who are presiding over them than they are today. I believe that our general and auxiliary organizations of the Church, also the standard organizations of the Priesthood, are performing their duty quite as well now, and I think somewhat better, than at any previous period of the Church's history. Why should it not be so ? We are not "ever learning and never coming to a knowledge of the truth." On the contrary, we are ever learning and are ever drawing nearer to a proper comprehension of the truth, the duty and the responsibility that devolve upon members of the Church who are called to responsible positions in it. Not only does this apply to those members which are called to act in responsible positions, but it applies to those who may be termed "lay members," if we may use such a term with reference to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. ¶

Who is there, under the circumstances that exist around us, that is not growing? Who is there of us that is not learning something day by day? Who is there of us that is not gaining experience as we pass along, and are attending to the duties of membership in the Church, and to the duties of citizens of our state, and citizens of our great and glorious nation? It seems to me that it would be a very sad comment upon the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and her people to suppose for a moment that we are at a standstill, that we have ceased to grow, ceased to improve and to advance in the scale of intelligence, and in the faithful performance of duty in every condition in which we are placed as a people and as members of the Church of Christ. ¶

I am most happy, my brethren and sisters, to say to you that which you all know, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is at peace with itself, and it is at peace with all the world. We have no spirit of war in our hearts. We have been taught and we have learned that it is a part of our duty, and a very important part, to abandon the spirit of strife, contention, and warfare, either among ourselves or against any portion of the children of men. We send out our elders to the nations of the earth, not to make war upon the religious organizations that exist, not to contend w'ith them and to create strife, ¶

confusion and contention among the inhabitants of the world. The message that we have to bear to men is the message of life, peace, salvation, and redemption from sin. ¶

Our elders are instructed here, and they are taught from their childhood up, that they are not to go out and make war upon the religious organizations of the world when they are called to go out to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but to go and bear with them the message which has been given to us through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph, in this latter dispensation, whereby men may learn the truth, if they will. They are sent out to offer the olive branch of peace to the world, to offer the knowledge that God has spoken from the heavens once more to his children upon the earth ; that God has in his mercy restored again to the world the fulness of the Gospel of His Only Begotten Son, in the flesh, that God has revealed and restored to mankind the divine power and authority from Himself, whereby they are enabled and authorized to perform the ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ necessary for their salvation, and their performance of these ordinances must of necessity be acceptable unto God who has given to them the authority to perform them in His name. Our elders are sent out to preach repentance of sin, to preach righteousness, to preach to the world the gospel of love, of fellowship and of friendship among mankind, to teach men and women to do that which is right in the sight of God and in the presence of all men, to teach them the fact that God has organized His Church, a Church of which He, Himself, is the author and the founder — not Joseph Smith, ¶

not President Brigham Young, not the Twelve Apostles, that have been chosen in this dispensation — to them does not belong the honor of establishing the Church, God is its author, God is its founder and we are sent out and we send out our elders to make this proclamation to the world, and leave it to their own judgment and discretion as to whether they will investigate it, learn the, truth for themselves, and accept it, or whether they will reject it. We do not make war upon them ; if they do not receive it, we do not contend with them if they fail to benefit themselves by receiving the message that we give to them for their own good, we only pity. Our sympathy goes out to those who will not receive the truth and who will not walk in the light when the light shines before them ; not hatred, not enmity, not the spirit of condemnation ; it is our duty to leave condemnation in the hands of Almighty God. He is the only real, true, righteous, impartial judge, and we leave judgment in His hands. Tt is not our business to proclaim calamities, judgments, destruction and the wrath of God upon men, if they will not receive the truth. Let them read the word of God, as recorded in the Xew and the Old Testaments, and, if they will receive it let them read the word that has been restored through the gift and power of God to Joseph the Prophet, as contained in the Doctrine and Covenants and in the Book of Mormon. Let them read these things, and they will learn there, themselves, the promises that God has made to those who will not hearken when they hear the truth, but will close their ear^ and their eyes against the light. We need not repeat these things and try to impose upon the feelings and judgments of men by threatening them or by warning them against the dangers and evils that may come upon the ungodly, the disobedient, the unthankful, and those who will not yield to the truth. They will learn it soon enough, if we do not mention it to them at all. ¶

It is not a part of our business to dwell upon these things ; our duty is to tell the truth, preach the truth, the peaceable things of the Kingdom of God, the way of life and salvation, the way of repentance, the way of righteousness, the way of love and of dealing one with another, the golden rule to do unto others as we would that they should do unto us, as taught by the Son of God. The great object and duty that devolves upon the Latter-day Saints is to learn, each man and each women for himself and for herself, their individual duty as members of the Church. Just as soon as a man or woman learns his and her duty to God and to those who are members with them in the household of faith, peace is established, love and good will are assured, no back-bitting, no fault-finding, no bearing false witness against neighbors, no strife, no contention. For the moment that a Latter-day Saint learns his duty, he will learn that it is his business to make peace, to establish good will, to work righteousness, to be filled with the spirit of kindness, love, charity, and forgiveness ; and, so far as he concerned, there can be no war, no strife, no contention, no quarreling, no disunion ; no factions can arise among the people who know their duty as Latter-day Saints. ¶

Another great and important duty devolving upon this people is to teach their children, from their cradle until they become men and women, every principle of the Gospel, and endeavor, as far as it lies in the power of the parents, to instil into their hearts a love for God, the truth, virtue, honesty, honor and integrity to every thing that is good. That is important for all men and women who stand at the head of a family in the household of faith. Teach your children the love of God. Teach them to love the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Teach them to love their fellowmen, and especially to love their fellow members in the Church, that they may be true to their fellowship with the people of God. Teach them to honor the priesthood, to honor the authority that God has bestowed upon His Church for the proper .government of His Church. The house of God is a house of order, and not a house of confusion ; and it could not be thus, if there were not those who had authority to preside, to direct, to counsel, to lead in the affairs of the Church. No house would be a house of order if it were not properlv organized as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints is organized. Take away the organization of the Church, and its power would cease. Every part of its organization is necessary, and essential to its perfect existence. Disregard, ignore, or omit any part and you start imperfection in the Church ; and if we should continue in that way we would find ourselves like those of old, being led by error, superstition, ignorance, and by the cunning and craftiness of men. We would soon leave out here a little and there a little, here a line and there a precept, until we would become like the rest of the world, divided, disorganized, confused, and without knowledge, without revelat*»n or inspiration, and without Divine authority or power. Of course, it is very necessary that those who preside in the Church should learn thoroughly their duties. There is not a man holding any position of authority in the Church who can perform his duty as he should in any other spirit than in the spirit of fatherhood and brotherhood toward those over whom he presides. Those who have authority should not be rulers, nor dictators, they should not be arbitrary, they should gain the hearts, the confidence and the love of those over whom they preside, by kindness and love unfeigned, by gentleness of spirit, by persuasion, by an example that is above reproach and above the reach of unjust criticism. In this way, in the kindness of their hearts, in their love for their people, they lead them in the path of righteousness, and teach them the way of salvation, by saying to them both by precept and example : Follow me, as I follow our head, the Redeemer of the world. This is the duty of those who preside. The duty of the high councils of the Church, when they are called to act upon questions involving the membership or standing of members of the Church, is to find out the truth, the facts, and then judge according to the truth and the facts that are brought to their understanding, always tempered with mercy, love, and kindness, and with the spirit in their souls to save and not to destroy and cast out. Our mission is to save, not destroy ; our aim should be to build up, and not to tear down. Our calling is to convey the spirit of love, truth, peace and good will to mankind throughout the world ; that war may cease ; that strife may come to an end. and that peace may prevail. I thank God. my Heavenly Father, ¶

as you do, every one of you present here today, and as do all the people of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that our land is at peace as much as it is. I am sorry that there should be any internal disruptions, division, or contention existing at all among the various organizations of the people of our land. I am sorry that there should be strife. If they had the true spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ they would not have strife ; they would cease to harbor feelings of contention and strife ; if troubles came they would meet together and deliberate in the spirit of wisdom, meekness and humility, invoking the blessing and spirit of Almighty God upon their deliberations and counsels, and calmly decide together upon that which would be for the common good, and then go as one man to do that which is necessary to build up the nation and the country in which we dwell. I am glad that we have kept out of war so far, and I hope and pray that we may not be under the necessity of sending our sons to war, or experience as a nation the distress, the anguish and sorrow that come from a condition such as exists upon the old continent. Oh God, have mercy upon thy poor children in Europe, and throughout the world, who are brought under the awful conditions that exist there because of the ambition and pride of men who claim the right and power to dictate, even to life or death, the conduct of the people over whom they rule. ¶

My brethren and sisters, God is with you ; the Lord is with this people ; and if we will be His children in very deed as He is in very deed our Father, I tell you that God will temper the elements for your good ; He will bless you with health ; He ¶

will bless you with abundance : He will bless the earth and make it fruitful. Those who reap their harvest by the toil and sweat of their brow, from mother earth, will have bounteous harvests if they will only serve God in their hearts and in their outward life. I feel just as sure of this as I do that I am standing before you here. ¶

I do not . feel that it would lie to my advantage, nor to yours, for me to continue my remarks very much longer. I have no need of course to refer to my personal feelings and condition ; but I have recently passed through my share of sorrow. Nevertheless the Lord has been so mer: ciful to me, He has blessed me in so many ways, and multiplied His favors and mercies upon me to such an extent that it would be shameful for me to complain, even under the most severe afflictions and adverse conditions and circumstances in life. T love truth wherever I see or find it. I love men and women who are virtuous and honorable. T would love a man, no matter who he is, if T knew that he was honest before God. He might differ with me in religious views, and in many other ways : but, is he honest with his fellow man and with his God? If he is, I honor him, and I love him for his honesty. ¶

When I think of our mothers, the mothers of our children, and realize that under the inspiration of the Gospel they live virtuous, pure, honorable lives, true to their husbands, true to their children, true to their convictions of the Gospel, oh, how my soul goes out in pure love for them ; how noble and how Godgiven, how choice, how desirable and how indispensable they arc to the accomplishment of God's purposes and the fulfilment of His decrees. My brethren, can you mistreat yonr wives, the mothers of vonr children? Can you help treating them with love and kindness? Can )rou help trying to make their lives as comfortable and happy as possible, lightening their burdens to the utmost of your ability, making life pleasant for them and for their children in their homes? How can you help it ? How can any one help feeling an intense interest in the mother of his children, and also in his children? If we possess the Spirit of God. we can not do otherwise. It is only when men depart from the right spirit, when they digress from their duty, that they will neglect or dishonor any soul that is committed to their care. They are bound to honor their wives and children. Intelligent men, men of business, men of affairs, men who are involved constantly in the labors of life, and have to devote their energies and thought to their labors .and duties, may not enjoy as many comforts with their families as they would like, but if they have the Spirit of the Lord with them in the performance of their temporal duties, they will never neglect the mothers of their children, nor their children. They will not fail to teach them the principles of life and set before them a proper example. Don't do anything yourselves that you would have to say to your boy, "Don't do it." Live so that you can sav, "My son, do as I do, follow me, emulate my example." That is the wav fathers should live, every one of us ; and it is a shame, a weakening, shameful thing for any member of the Church to pursue a course that he knows is not right and that he would rather his children should not follow. What a shameful thing it is for a man to place upon himself ¶

an embargo, a handicap against doing his full duty to those that love him and whom he should love above his own life, by yielding to appetites that are wrong and to passions that are base, and doing things that he ought not to do, and that he would feign keep his children from doing. Do your duty, my brethren, and the Lord will do His for you. ¶

We want Zion to grow and become strong in righteousness. We desire the people of Zion to develop in understanding and grow in knowledge and become strong in wisdom. We want you to cultivate the spirit of mercy, of charity and forgiveness. We want you to be generous to the poor ; we desire that you will guard the helpless, the aged, and provide for them. God has made provision in His Church, in the complete organization of it, so that every faithful soul in it may be looked after and nurtured and cared for in the hour of need. The trouble with us at present is that there are so many men who are holding membership in the Church, who neglect their duty in so many ways, that we have not the means to provide as amply as we would like for the necessities of the poor. When you look upon a tithing record, a book of large dimensions, containing the names of members of the Church who do not pay their tithing, you do not need to wonder why the Church has not more means to provide for the poor. We are doing the best we can with the means we have. I am going to read you just a few little things that we are doing with the means you consecrate to the Lord for the upbuilding of Zion. ¶

The general Church Auditing Committee has examined the receipts and disbursements of the tithes of the stakes of Zion and missions, also the accounts of the Presiding Bishop's Office, and the accounts in the office of the Trustee-in-Trust. Their report will be rendered before the close of the conference, I suppose. ¶

The following report will show how the tithing of the Church, for the year 1914, has been disbursed. Now I am taking a liberty that has not been indulged in very much ; but there have been so many false charges made against me and against my brethren by ignorant and evilly disposed people, that I propose to make a true statement which will, I believe, at least have a tendency to convince you that we are trying to do our duty the best we know how : ¶

April 4, 1915. ¶

The following report will show how the tithing of the Church for the year 1914 has been disbursed : ¶

For the erection and maintenance of stake tabernacles, ward meeting houses, amusement halls and other stake and ¶

ward expenses $ 730,960.00 ¶

For the maintenance of Church schools 330,984.00 ¶

For the maintenance of our Temples 64,508.00 ¶

For the erection of mission houses and general mission activities, and return fares of missionaries 227,()00.00 ¶

For the maintenance of Church buildings and Church institutions, including the Temple block and the Presiding ¶

Bishop's office 99,293.00 ¶

For the completion and maintenance of the Latter-dav Saints ¶

Hospital 136,727.00 ¶

For the erection of the Cardston Temple 52,647.00 ¶

For the erection of the new Church office building 128,663.00 ¶

Paid to the worthy poor out of the tithing funds 1 16.238.00 ¶

$1,887,920.00 ¶

This is the entire tithing of the Church in all the world for the year 1 c> 1 -4. ¶

The expenses of the General Authorities and the maintenance of the office of the First Presidency are paid out of revenues derived from investments, and not out of the tithes of the Church. ¶

In addition to the amount paid out of the tithes to the poor. .$ 1 16.238.00 there has been collected and paid to the poor by the Relief Society 74.290.00 ¶

And there has been paid to the poor by the Bishops from ¶

the fast offerings and other ward charity funds 76,000.00 ¶

Making a total paid to the poor for 1914 $ 266.528.00 ¶

There has been collected for the war sufferers, which is being ¶

expended under the direction of President Hyrum M. ¶

Smith, of the European Mission $ 33,000.00 ¶

Our records show that 73% of all the Latter-day Saint families residing in all the stakes of Zion own their own homes. The birth rate of the Church for the year 1914 is 39.5 to the thousand. The death rate for the year 1914 is 8.3 to the thousand. Marriage rate for the year 1914 is 17 to the thousand. During the year there were 14,717 children blessed. There are 1,316 Elders and 115 women laboring in the missions as missionaries. ¶

Of the membership of the Church residing in the stakes of Zion, 319.000 were born in the United States. ¶

There has been a net increase in the membership of the Church in the stakes of Zion from the year 1901 to 1914 of 129,493 souls. ¶

There are now 739 wards and 33 independent branches. There are 68 stakes of Zion and 21 missions. During the year 1914, 21 new wards have been organized and 2 stakes of Zion. ¶

There have been performed in the Temples during the past year, 166,909 baptisms for the living and dead, and 72,952 endowments for the living and dead. Altogether 326,264 ordinances have been performed in the four temples. This is a very considerable increase over any previous year. ¶

Ward teaching has been given considerable attention by the stake and ward officers, with the results that in some of the stakes of Zion the work has been so well developed that 96(/( of all the families are visited by the ward teachers each month. ¶

Now some people have reported that the tithes of the Church amount to millions every year, and Joseph F. Smith has the absolute control of all these millions, and never gives any account of them to the world, nor to anybody else. Now we are not giving this to the world ; we are giving it to the Latter-day Saints. These amounts which I have read, I think it may be proper to state here, cover the entire tithing of the Church in all the world, for the year 1914. Now when you come to talk about the millions and millions of dollars of tithing paid by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it is simmered down to $1,887,920, for the year 1914, and that was an average year. I may be pardoned, perhaps, if I say here, for the benefit of any who do not know the facts, that the law of tithing is a voluntary law : that is, it imposes only a voluntary duty upon the people. No person's standing as a member of ¶

the Church, is jeopardized because he doesn't pay his tithing. There are a good many of us who don't observe all the laws, and it is a good thing that the Lord does not execute justice and judgment upon a great many of us because of it. ¶

The expenses of the general authorities and the maintenance of the First Presidency are paid out of the revenues derived from investments, and not out of the tithes of the Church. These investments, as a rule, consist of contributions of stocks of various kinds to the Church on tithing, which have been held by the Church ; and the dividends that we derive from these stocks and investments are for the benefit of the people in every instance, for the Church has never made an investment that had not for its object the benefiting of the whole people, as far as possible, fostering industries, and the colonization of our country. It has been done for ¶

aiding the settlers of our country, our state and our adjoining states, as far as possible, by assisting them with means, to help them lay the foundation of prosperity for themselves. ¶

It just occurs to me that we are talking to you on the Sabbath day, and some people, perhaps, may feel that it is somewhat out of place for us to talk about money and temporalities, about tithing, or the expenditure of means and the uses made of it, on the Sabbath day, but the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. God made or designated the Sabbath day for a day of rest, a clay of worship, a day for goodly deeds, and for humility and penitence, and the worship of the Almighty in spirit and in truth. ¶

There has been collected for the war sufferers, which is being expended under the direction of President Hyrum M. Smith of the European Mission, $33,000. This was done on one day, practically, a day set apart for general contributions for the benefit of the sufferers, in consequence of the war. T have a list of the names of all the stakes of Zion and the wards which contributed these means, and it was all contributed and handled and sent to the sufferers to lie distributed equally and impartially, — to Latterday Saints, mind you, first. T want to tell you that, we will be honest with you ; we feel that it is the first duty of Latter-day Saints to take care of themselves, and of their poor; and then, if we can extend it to others, and as wide and as far as we can extend charity and assistance to others that are not members of the Church, we feel that it is our duty to do it. But first look after the members of our own household. The man who will not provide for ¶

his own house, as one of old has said, is worse than an infidel. So we make no apologies for saying that we have collected these means for the suffering Latter-day Saints that are afflicted because of the war, in Germany, in Austria, in Italy, in Switzerland, Holland and in England and anywhere else where they are suffering in consequence of it. It cost the fund not one penny, not even a postage stamp for collection. May be you would like to know that : there were no paid agencies, no paid collectors. No one received a nickel from the funds contributed for the assistance of the afflicted and the suffering. It was done through the channels of the holy priesthood, through the organization of the Church, in the regular way, and it has cost nobody anything. The First Presidency received the other day the following cable message from the President of the Swiss and German Mission : ¶

"Two thousand dollar relief fund thankfully received. Express gratitude to God's people. Conditions satisfactory. — VALENTINE, President Swiss and German Mission." ¶

We have received also a number of returns from President Mvrum M. Smith, but in volume, and these returns have not been condensed, so that they can be presented here. ¶

Now, we have a few more statements that I desire to read : Our records show that 73^ of all the Latter-day Saint families, residing in all the stakes of Zion. own their own homes. I am sorry that this figure is not as large as it has been in the past, but we have become more numerous than we were when 95% of the people of the Church owned their own little homes and owed nothing to anybody for them. Let me inject here, once more, my standing admonition to the Latterday Saints : My brethren, see to it that yon do not put a mortgage upon the roof that covers the heads of your wives and your children. Don't do it. Don't plaster your farms with mortgages, because it is from your farms that you reap your food, and the means to provide your raiment and your other necessaries of life. Keep your possessions free from debt. Get out of debt as fast as you can, and keep out of debt, for that is the way in which the promise of God will be fulfilled to the people of His Church, that they will become the richest of all people in the world. But this will not happen while you mortgage your homes and your farms, or run into debt beyond your ability to meet your obligations ; and thus, perhaps, your name and credit be dishonored because you over-reached yourselves. "Never reach farther than you can gather," is a good motto. ¶

From each of the newly organized wards we have received calls to assist to help build new meetinghouses ; and so the work goes on. I have read the figures of the hundreds of thousands that we are appropriating for the assistance in the erection of meetinghouses, tabernacles, and amusement places for the vouth of Zion. to keep them under proper restraint and control. ¶

The work in the temples has been the largest on record. There have been performed in the temples, during the past year, 166.909 baptisms for the living and dead, — an indication that we are increasing the membership of the Church very, very much faster in the spirit-world than we are on earth. ¶

Now, my brethren and sisters, we do not want to weary you with statistics. Our duty is not to deal particularly in statistics and in financial matters. Our paramount duty is the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the inculcation of the principles of that Gospel in the hearts and souls of all our children. This is our duty. God bless you. I am glad to see you here. I surely welcome you with all my soul, and I feel in my soul that God will bless you for your presence here. Why are you here? Because you are members of the Church of Jesus Christ. You are here because this is the annual conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. You are here because you are members of that Church and because you are members of the priesthood and of the auxiliary organizations of the Church and are all interested in the well-being, advancement, and development, spiritually, intellectually, physically and financially, and every other way, of the people of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. God bless you, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶

A soprano solo, "Christ is Risen," was sung by Sister Esther Davis Stephens. ¶